Abstract

This set of lecture notes introduces the dynamics, statistics, clouds, and models of the planetary boundary layer (PBL). The author prepared the notes for graduate classes while on sabbatical leave at the Department of Atmospheric Science at Colorado State University in 1994 and 1998 and the Depa... Show moreThis set of lecture notes introduces the dynamics, statistics, clouds, and models of the planetary boundary layer (PBL). The author prepared the notes for graduate classes while on sabbatical leave at the Department of Atmospheric Science at Colorado State University in 1994 and 1998 and the Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, in 2006. The notes evolved over those years. These lecture notes cover the basic concepts of PBL turbulence and describe different PBL types including clear convective, neutral and stable regimes, as well as boundary-layer clouds. The last chapter introduces various PBL parameterization schemes developed for weather and climate models Show less